A vigorous pour into my 25cl tulip glass produces a fiver-finger thick, nicely browned, frothy head. The beer is quite black in color, though it shows flashes of burnt ruby notes if moved directly up to the light. The aroma has quite a bit of roast character to it, but it remains smooth and not over-bearing. This has a nice mix of rich, roasted coffee notes, dark chocolate, a touch of roasted smoke as well as charred whole grain bread. There are some charred prune notes in the aroma as well along with a touch or burnt tartness. As the beer warms up the charred prune not seems to thin out the richness that was in this beer originally; it seems to finish on a weak note that also has a touch of vegetal character to it.

Thick and viscous, this almost has a syrup like feeling to it as it rests on my tongue. Lots of charred grain notes offset a rich, but very tempered, complex grain sweetness. The beer finishes with a substantial bitterness that seems a combination of hops and lots of bitter burnt grain notes. Towards the finish the sweetness accentuates notes of blackened prunes and charred raisins; this is actually quite fruity, which definitely helps to offset the roast character. Some dark chocolate character is noticeable as a hint of character that peaks out amongst the more focused roasted notes that are reminiscent of strong black coffee, burnt whole grain toast and even a touch of charred smokiness. As the beer warms up a touch of spicy, warming alcohol becomes more noticeable in the finish, but this is fairly mellow for a 10% abv beer.

This started out with some promise, but somehow seems to finish a bit disappointing. I like that this was not overly charred, but the character of this beer just doesn't seem all that well integrated. Perhaps it needs some age to round things out and make it more balanced. Not bad, just a bit disappointing.

Pours like a stout should, deep black color with almost an inch of foam that quickly dies down.

Smell is of coffee at first, and milk chocolate. There's some roasted malts in there and some hazelnut but also a slightly tangy aroma. Stronger notes of chocolate come through as the beer warms up, much like chocolate oatmeal. I'm also detecting some warm milk, and a little sour milk, and malted milk.

Taste is of dry cocoa at first, some roasted barley, maybe a little sourness with a lot of carbonation. There's some dry crackers and bitter chocolate as well. Lactic, something just doesn't seem right. I had this one before and I liked it a bit more when it first came out, right now it just doesn't impress me. Not as flavorful as it could be.

A - Pours a very dark brown colored body that is completely opaque. No light gets through this one. Head is about a finger tall and very fizzy. Disappears quickly. Leaves some whisps in the middle of the glass and a ring around the glass.

S - Lots of roasty malts. Dusty cocoa. There's a bit of coffee in here, but it seems to be an afterthought.

T - Begins with the cocoa that was present in the nose. Cocoa blends with baker's chocolate and holds on for a second. Roasted barley hits, but seems a bit weak. Light coffee bitterness works it's way in, followed by a nuttiness that almost seems out of place.

M - Full bodied and very smooth and creamy.

Overall - Good, not great beer. There are a lot of flavors in here, but many really don't "come out" I would like it to be much the same in flavor profile, but more robust.

T: Begins dry and somewhat sour. Tastes like its nitrogen infused as well. Not a lot of overall sweetness, but interestingly enough the roasted barley isn’t that strong either. Nitrogen is what seems to be the predominant player in the group . Only a minor amount of American chocolate, old hazelnuts and a simple sour coffee seems to organize any other flavors. Finishes with a bit of graham and a hint of pretzel,

M: Full bodied and creamy.

D: Unfortunately, I was disappointed. Although this beer had great balance, it just didn’t have a spark or any fire to it. I expect a lot from San Diego breweries and this beer was just “ok”.

Served In: Mug

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